New study says Singapore is the safest country in Asia for travelers, while the Philippines is the least safe
SINGAPORE: A new study from the comparison platform HelloSafe has found that, among Asian countries, Singapore is the safest destination to travel to this year. At the opposite end of the scale is the Philippines, which the study says is not only the least safe country for travelers in Asia for 2025 but also for the rest of the world.
The study ranked the Little Red Dot the second safest country across the globe. Additionally, Singapore is the only non-European country in the top five.
HelloSafe based its ranking on criteria divided into the following categories: natural disasters, violence in society, involvement in internal or external armed conflicts, health infrastructure, and militarization. The company clarified, however, that its ranking is not meant to reflect how attractive a country is to tourists but is rather 'a global index of security and safety based on the largest possible number of objective criteria.' Screengrab/ HelloSafe
The company published an index where countries were assigned a score out of 100, with 0 being the safest and 100 being the least safe, from a security standpoint. It added that the results were somewhat surprising and at times ran counter to preconceived notions.
In pole position is Iceland, characterized by HelloSafe as the safest country in the world, with a score of 18.23 points. Singapore took second place, with 19.99 points, closely followed by Denmark, with 20.05 points. Austria (20.31) and Switzerland (20.51) round out the top five.
HelloSafe considers Europe to be the safest continent for travelers, with 12 of the top 15 countries on the list located in Europe. Aside from runner-up Singapore, Bhutan is ranked 11th (22.98 points), followed by Qatar in 12th place (23.33 points).
As for the least safe countries in the world, the Philippines took the top spot with 82.32, followed by Colombia (79.21 points) and Mexico (78.42 points). India, with a score of 77.86, and Russia, with a score of 75.65, ranked fourth and fifth, respectively. Interestingly, the United States is ranked 14th on the list, with a score of 59.47.
HelloSafe also noted that France, unlike many other European countries, received a poor ranking. The country is the 80th safest country in the world and 34th in Europe, with a score of 36 points. The company attributed its low score to the threat of terrorism, which HelloSafe says remains 'very present' in France. See also Chinese shooting star in Bollywood
As for Southeast Asia, here is how Singapore's neighbours fared. Malaysia received a relatively low score of 36.92, which puts it in the 'Safe' category. Meanwhile, the scores of Vietnam (51.33) and Thailand (52.39) meant HelloSafe classifies them as 'Not Very Safe,' and Indonesia's score of 72.94 put the country in the 'Dangerous' category.
A maximum of 30 points was given for the occurrence of natural disasters, 20 points for violence in society, 20 points for involvement in internal or external armed conflicts, 20 points for healthcare infrastructure, and 10 points for the militarization of a country. /TISG
Read also: Crazy things happen in Singapore, the safest country in the world
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